CBS parent company Paramount Global’s widely panned decision to settle with President Donald Trump in his lawsuit against 60 Minutes brought one of its most esteemed correspondents to tears.
During a Zoom meeting with 60 Minutes staff on Wednesday—just hours after Paramount announced it had settled with Trump for $16 million—correspondent Bill Whitaker appeared “teary-eyed” as he spoke about the show, according to media reporter Oliver Darcy’s Status newsletter.
It was Whitaker’s interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris that prompted Trump’s lawsuit. Trump claimed the program deceptively edited Harris’ comments about the war in Gaza, airing a different portion of her answer on Face the Nation, though the show contended it made a standard editing decision to fit the timeslot.
Paramount settled the lawsuit on Wednesday, agreeing to give $16 million to Trump’s presidential libraries and promising to release the full transcript of the interview. It did not, however, issue an apology.
CBS News did not respond to an immediate request for comment.
Emotions were high during the meeting with staffers discussing the settlement. Many employees were dismayed, though not surprised, that the company had settled, according to Status. Longtime correspondent Lesley Stahl voiced her frustration about the decision, as did correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi, according to Status.
Interim executive producer Tanya Simon told staffers she understood their concerns and said she was relieved the show did not issue an apology.
Simon and CBS News President Tom Cibrowski told staffers the show would work to ensure its editorial independence as Paramount seeks to complete its merger with David Ellison’s Skydance.
Paramount said in its announcement late Tuesday that the settlement was unrelated to its request for federal approval for the merger deal, though the Federal Communications Commission has linked the 60 Minutes-Harris interview tp its review. If the deal is approved, controlling shareholder Shari Redstone would receive a $2.4 billion payout.
Instead, CBS Co-CEO George Cheeks told shareholders on Wednesday the company settled to “avoid the high and somewhat unpredictable cost of legal defense.”
“Settlement offers a negotiated resolution to allow companies to focus on their core objectives rather than being mired in uncertainty and distraction,” Cheeks said.
CBS is the latest victim in Trump’s war against the press, which has ensnared everyone from ABC News to the Associated Press to the Des Moines Register.
Disney settled with Trump in December for $16 million over a George Stephanopoulos interview that wrongly characterized a jury’s decision to find Trump liable for sexual abuse as “rape.” Trump sued the company in March 2024 for defamation.
Trump also sued the Des Moines Register and its former top pollster, Ann Selzer, last year after Selzer released a poll that showed Harris leading in Iowa. Trump ultimately won Iowa and the election, but he claimed the poll amounted to “election interference.” The paper and Selzer have denied the claims. Trump dropped the lawsuit on Monday.
The Trump administration also sought to block the Associated Press from White House events after the wire service refused to change its style guide to reflect Trump’s chosen name for the Gulf of Mexico, the “Gulf of America.” The White House lost in court, though an appeals court stayed the ruling earlier this month.
The post ‘60 Minutes’ Star Tears Up Over $16 Million Trump Settlement appeared first on The Daily Beast.
